My girl is getting old (she turned 12 in October).
Recently my husband and I returned from an overnight trip to find that her back legs had completely given out on her. She had spent the night at her ‘grandma’s’ house and she was fine when we left. A little slow and stiff, but nothing that concerned us.
When we went to pick her up she kept falling over and was army crawling with her back legs.
This was bad. She was clearly in pain, uncomfortable, and then there was the whole walking thing..which wasn’t happening at all.
I spent most of that night bawling…I was in no way ready for this; it happened so quickly.
Fortunately I was able to get her a vet appt. the next day and the after numerous tests and being poked and prodded the diagnosis came in. She’s elderly and the arthritis and DJD (degnerative joint disease) is catching up with her.
The vet decided to put her on a series of injections and a more powerful glucosamine tablet then what she has currently been on.
So every 4 days we travel to the vet, she gets her shot and off we go. She also gets 2 of the glucosamine tablets a day and right now she seems to be holding her own.
So what does all of this have to do with selling?
Well here’s the thing: She liked the other pills we were giving her…these new ones…not so much (they are bigger and clearly aren’t as tasty as the other ones).
She needs them, but doesn’t want them.
This is, of course, a classic selling/marketing dilemma.
We tend to focus on what our clients need; and we don’t address what they want.
You know your clients need what you have to offer, but have you considered approaching it from what it is that they really want?
Bailey wants to feel better, but doesn’t realize she needs to take the pills in order to get that.
She wants the results that come from needing to take the pill…to feel better
Your clients want the results that come from giving them what they need
So with Bailey, I tried breaking the pill up and giving it to her with a small pieces of cheese; nope, she ate the cheese spit the pill out. Same thing with lunch meat.
And so on
hmmmm…
After some trial and error, I have the the ‘secret’ to getting her to take the pill. I break it up pretty finely and mix it in with her dog food during her mealtimes. I sweeten the deal by putting in a little hamburger or chicken as well as her favorite wet dog food.
Voila…I have satisfied her wants and met her needs.
It takes some time to as an entrepreneur to figure out what that sweet spot is between giving your clients what they need; but meeting them where they are in terms of what they want.
Getting clear on the outcomes of what your clients need is vital in being able to speak the language of your clients, delivering what they want, and feeling in alignment with your Brand’s Core Values and Brand Promise. There is no need to engage in marketing or selling that feels “ick”.
If you struggle with this, I invite you to check out a very special coaching offer that I’ve put together.
Be a Brand that feels good knowing you are truly making a difference in the lives of your clients by giving them what they need and want.
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